Gov. Gregoire visits the Veterans in Piping training program

October 21, 2008

AS WRITTEN

Good morning, and thank you, Mike (Arndt, UA Director of Training) for the kind introduction.

I don�t normally like to use the word �thrilled� to describe how I�m feeling. I like to reserve that word for special occasions. But I have to tell you I�m truly thrilled at what�s happening here today.

Not so very long ago, my husband Mike and I, along with my Veterans Affairs Director John Lee�our wonderful Washington trade unions�and several other partners� had a dream.

And it was that our military men and women coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan would replace their helmets for hard hats and launch new lives for them and their families as skilled tradesmen and women.

So here we are today � 16 veterans training under the auspices of The United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry�

�Training in the art of welding�Training to become welding apprentices with good paying jobs for the rest of their working careers � Jobs that will support families and continue to strengthen Washington�s economy.

It warms my heart to hear your stories.

�Joe Witt�who served in Bosnia and Iraq�who loves to work with his hands and has found a way to do it and make a good living�

�Or Theresa James � better known as TJ � a single mother (and grandmother!) who will use her new skill to help support her family, including a nine-year-old son�.

I am grateful to the UA for your generosity in providing $15,000 per veteran to make this training possible.

And I�m pleased to say state government also made a significant financial investment to prepare this class for the training now under way.

To all our partners, thank you.

And to each and every one of you students, congratulations. I wish you luck and success as you complete your training, and thank you for your service to this country.


You served your country, and now it�s our turn to support you.